Improvement in apparatus for treating club feet



N-PEYERS, PMDYOLUTMOGRAPHER, WASHINGTON. D CV 'dnited gaat@ pear apta.

lLaim Patent No. 106,907, dated August 30,1870.

IMPROVEMENT IN APPARATUS FOR TREATING- CLUB FEET;

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making part ofthe same To all whom lit may concern Be it known that I, GEORGE B. Woon, of Chicav go, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented an Apparatus for Straightening Club Feet; and I do hereby declare that the followingis a full and exact description thereof, which will enable those skilled in the art to make and use the same, refer-V ence being had to the accompanying drawing, and letters marked thereon making a part of this specification, in which-' Figure 1 is a representation of a human foot and part of the leg,\'vith my apparatus attached.

Figure 2, the apparatus removed from the foot and leg.-

Figure 3, a perspective representation ot the toot-- plate removed from the lother part ot' the apparatus.

Figure 4, a section, o, showing the device for adjnsting the straps which are attached to the leg.

Figure 5, a frontor end view-of the footlplate, sbowinghow it is adjusted to give the plantar' surface ofthe foot the natural position.

`lhe presentinvention relates to a new and improved surgieal apparatus for treating club foot in its v various fox-ms, such as talipes equinas, talipes calca- Those parts of straps A projectingbelow the pivots F swing in slot'sthrmed between the parts J J and housings I, as show-n more clearly in the/sectionv at Iig. 4.

In these housings are placed screws 0,'whicb are held so as to rotate by means of fixed annular collars J", fig. 4,projeetiiwinto annular grooves formed ini the inner parts of aid screws.

P represents slides, which are provided with internal screw-threads, and which do not turn 0n the screws 0, but have longitudinal movements on them back and forth when the said screws O are turned, and they are provided with lugs x. on their sides adjoining the plate J, in order to form stops for the lower` ends ofthe straps A to bear against.

This construction 'and arrangement'is such' that, while the foot can be readilyelevated by an easy movement ot' theankle-joiut it cannotfall vbelow the point of adjustment made by the screws, the pivots F being placed in such positions as to be nearly opposite the axis of the ankle-joint. y

lA foot-plate, K, provided with a. heel-support, H, is placed inside of the frame .J J, and one of its corners atgthe front end is pivoted at. L to that part of the fi'ame J J shown' at R, tig. 5, and the opposite part of the plate at N is adjusted hy a screw, so as t give the plantar surface of the foot a natural position.-

.The-straps A and frame J R J, with standards G, may '3e put into a boot orshoe, asmost convenient, so as to Yallow the same to have a free movement of the ankle-joint.

The foot-plate K may also conform toa boot o1' shoe, only sothat the adjustment, by means of screw N, oi" its equivalent, is retained to treat talipes varus and talipes valgus, a condition of the foot where it is rotated inward or outward, the screw N and pivot L beingchanged to oppositesides of foot-plate K in treating talipes valgus.

To use the apparatus, the longitudinal curve of the foot is straightenedon the plate K, by means of bandages, in the proper manner. The straps Aare vthen swung forward, as shown by dotted lines b, and

the plate K, with the foot secured as above stated,

placed inside of the frame' J J, and hooked onto the pivot at L.

After this, the straps A are secured to the. leg;

and the side-0f plate K elevated by screw N to bring. the plantar surface'of the foot to the natural position.

' To raise the anterior of the foot, when treating alipes equinas, the' screws O must be turned so as to shorten tliedstance between the points :c x on line Z, fig. 1, the ankle, at the same time, beings-tayed by strap M. v'lhis can be done so gradually in most cases, taken in infancy, as to obviate the necessity of performing an operation.

As a whole, the apparatus is found to be better adapted to treating the diliculty .named than any other device for a like purpose.4

` Having thus described my invention,

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Paten't of the United States, is

1. The straps, A, acting as levers, when pi'voted to the standards Gr of frame J ,and made to project be'- low the pivot', so as to prevent the anterior part of the-foot from dropping down, as setforth.

, 2. '.'lhecombination of the straps A, frame GR,-

and adjusting-screws O, for adjusting the anterior part of the foot, as set forth.

3. The shoe-plate K, pivoted .tothe frame J G B, and adjusted by means of a screw, N, or its equivalent, for bringing the plantar surface of the foot near its anterior part into position, substantially as set forth.

4. The combination of the plate K, flame J G R, straps A, and strap M, ,arranged to treat club feet, as setforth.

Witnesses- G. L. OnAPnv,

J.' B. SKnvNEB.

GEORGE B. woon.4 

